speaking more of target loads than field ammo. Fun just to see! For myself it would be the following:

- Federal 75%
- Remington 20%
- Estate, Winchester, Fiocchi, etc. 5%

dalecooper51

June 28, 2012, 07:43 AM

Near 100% of my shooting has been done using my own reloads using Remington Gun Club hulls.

I cant remember the last time I picked up a box of shells.

Orphanedcowboy

June 28, 2012, 08:24 AM

Duck:

Federal Ultra Shok 100%

Target:

Federal Gold Medal 75%(soon to be 0%)
Federal Top Gun 15%(soon to be 100%)
Remington STS/Nitro 10%(soon to be 0%)

shortwave

June 28, 2012, 08:44 AM

Target loads are mostly Federal.

Small game hunting is usually Remington.

Although I used Remington Sluggers for many years with no problem in my smoothbore for deer hunting, a couple years ago I switched to Brenneke K.O.'s as I found they produced a bit better, consistent accuracy in that particular shotgun.

Old Grump

June 28, 2012, 11:34 AM

I thought this would be easy then I looked at my inventory and realized a lot of what I shoot is no longer in my inventory and some parts of my inventory have lots more shells in them than other parts so brands listed don't necessarily reflect what I have the most of.

The bare bones truth is I am not brand fussy and while I have every size shot and a goodly supply of slugs in every gauge from .410 to 10 gauge I have favorite shot sizes but no favorite brands. If I was a wing shooter or trap and sleet shooter I'm sure that would change but deer, rabbits and turkey aren't as critical from my point of view as somebody shooting at a feathered rocket bursting from under their feet.

Now that I have just bought a reloading set up for my 10 gauge and my .410 my brand choices may become even less important as I mix and match my own loads to gun and purpose.

TheKlawMan

June 28, 2012, 11:50 AM

Remington Gun Clubs (rarely buy, get used hulls at range and reload them)

oneounceload

June 28, 2012, 01:00 PM

Gun Clubs and then reload
for registered shoots I use factory throw aways from Federal or Estate (same thing)

Slugo

June 28, 2012, 02:13 PM

anybody ever use B&P? I never did, just asking...

BigJimP

June 28, 2012, 02:40 PM

In 12ga and 20ga ....

I've shot a few flats of B&P ...nothing special about them. About the only time I bought them / was when I flew somewhere...and that was the premium load they had for sale, so I'd buy a flat. I never kept the hulls or reloaded them when I traveled. One of the kids pulling targets was usually happy to have them ..and policed them up.
-----------
For the last 20 yrs or so ....
For tournaments I shoot almost exclusively Rem STS or Rem Nitro shells...usually new, if its a big tournament. I still keep 5 or 6 flats of new shells around ...

Once in a while, if I'm shooting a semi-auto ---( like in the rain ) and I want to shoot a throw away shell, I'll shoot a box of Rio's sporting clays loads.
---------
From the 70's thru the early 90's I shot exclusively Win AA's - new and in my own reloads. When I got back into shooting ..especially into sporting clays in the 90's I switched everything to Rem STS / Nitro hulls on my reloads...so that's what I bought for new flats as well.
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I find Estate is a really dirty shell...so I avoid those unless I travel and that's all I can get. I was never a Federal fan ...or Fiocchi ...

BigJimP

June 28, 2012, 02:49 PM

In 28ga and .410's ....

I have 8 or 10 flats of new shells...Rem STS ...for each ..../ and right now I'm reloading them for each as well....and they're ok in .410's ....

28ga ...Rem STS hulls ..have Issues !!
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I'm very unhappy with the durability of the 28ga Rem STS hulls ( way too many of them - the plastic extrusion is breaking off inside the brass cup ) as the shell is fired...sometimes on the first factory firing, sometimes on 1st or 2nd reload....and once in a while the hull will stick in the barrel ..well into the forcing cone ( making it possible to load a 2nd shell...and fire it behind a blocked chamber...) ....:eek::eek: I've fired them on a skeet field ( only in my O/U's --- its way too risky to shoot them in a pump gun or semi-auto in my opinion )....and when I've fired them in my 28ga O/U ...I've had the target break normally ...and the hull fracture and remain inside the gun.

Its a pretty serious issue...and while its been reported in some of the shotgun magazines...starting about 3 yrs ago ...and pretty well know among skeet reloaders...I'm not sure its widely known.

I would not let any of my grandkids shoot a 28ga Rem STS shell ...even new factory shells....in a pump gun or a semi-auto ...( targets might break normally, shell sounds fine ...and that hull when the cup was extracted ..might still be in the chamber ( maybe the pump or semi-auto would jam ....and maybe not / which really worries me ) ...so in the 28ga, the only gun I trust for the kids to fire is my Browning O/U.

oneounceload

June 28, 2012, 03:16 PM

anybody ever use B&P? I never did, just asking.

Yes , as well as Fiocchi - but not on a regular basis - B&P makes some nice ammo, but I really CAN'T tell the difference - and therefore justify the price difference - between them and others. Fiocchi makes some nice ammo, especially their Rhino and Crusher lines

1tfl

June 28, 2012, 03:40 PM

I use mostly Winchester as thats what I have.
I bought out three local K-Mart stores arund me when they discontinued ammo sales about 10 years ago. I think I ended up with about 700 boxes with about 80% of them being the 7 1/2 Field Load. At $0.99 per box I couldn't pass.

TheKlawMan

June 28, 2012, 04:46 PM

$0.99 a box! $0.99 a box! $0.99 a box! $0.99 a box! $0.99 a box! $0.99 a box! Daffy calls that duckingly dastardly!!!

Slugo

June 28, 2012, 04:55 PM

I can also remember, back in the mid 90's I used to shoot Winchester DoubleAA's and Federal Papers!! Dem were da days... ;)

BigJimP

June 28, 2012, 05:11 PM

I'm too young to remember paper hulls....:D

(no, you can't make me remember....) I won't do it ....

...../ unless you offer me a cupcake ...and then I'll do most anything ..since I'm still on this diet of "if it tastes good, spit it out " ....

snuzzo29

June 28, 2012, 05:38 PM

I have used mostly Federal but have also used Remington and some Winchesters.

Anything with a brass hull. I even have a couple hundred blue Peters around here somewhere.

Old Grump

June 29, 2012, 11:19 AM

any one remember the old peters paper shells Picked up a few hundred rounds at an estate auction about 10 years ago. They got put away and not found again till last summer when I shot them up. One had a funny little sound but worked well on my target, all the rest worked as well as any other shell. They were high velocity loads and didn't look all that old so I assumed they were the ones made by Remington under the Peters name.

I have most of a box of Western Field loads too but those aren't going to get shot. They came in a box along with a miscellaneous collection of centerfire cartridges and a pair of WWII vintage binoculars.

zippy13

June 29, 2012, 11:27 AM

...I used to shoot Winchester DoubleAA's and Federal Papers!!
Works for me.
There's nothing like the smell of Federal papers in the morning.

Chuckusaret

June 29, 2012, 11:45 AM

I started out on Peter's and switched to Remington when Peter's was no longer available. Have I dated myself?

Haven't gotten into too any hunting since I moved to good ol' North Dakota just a lot of clays.

a7mmnut

June 29, 2012, 12:45 PM

Estate Cartridge

zippy13

June 29, 2012, 12:48 PM

Haven't gotten into too any hunting since I moved to good ol' North Dakota just a lot of clays.
What's going on? The guys down here go to the Dakotas for the bird shooting and you're popping clays. Sounds like the cosmos is out of balance. :)

oneounceload

June 29, 2012, 05:36 PM

Haven't gotten into too any hunting since I moved to good ol' North Dakota just a lot of clays.

Times are a changing - when I lived in ND, there were NO clays and everything was about hunting in fact that was where I learned about pheasant and duck hunting

KevK.

June 29, 2012, 10:27 PM

I used Federal for target shooting (90%), and Hornady for SD/HD (10%).

I make a point of taking a box or 2 of the Hornady when I go to the range to shoot.

globalsmack

June 30, 2012, 09:42 PM

Federal top gun and estate.

They both run good and are usually cheap.

Sphawley

July 2, 2012, 10:03 PM

remmington STS and then I reload them for some more fun!

bamaranger

July 3, 2012, 01:37 AM

I'm a turkey hunter, spring gobbler is my game.

First turkey loads were 3" W-W, 1-7/8 oz of shot. Then Federal came out with their 2 oz loads and I shot those for a few years.

Then came the Activ shotshell company, and 2 -1/4 oz of shot in a 3" shell. In my gun, #6 shot was like saturation fire, and #5 with that load seemed a great killer as well. But...velocity was likely suffering, that much shot and short turkey tubes...somethings got to give.

Active went under and I begtan looking for another shell. I'm back to W-W Premium, 1-3/4 oz of #5 shot. Patterns as well as the old 2 oz loads, and velocity is much higher (I hope). Won't break the bank like space shot either.

psycho nut

July 5, 2012, 02:21 AM

When I shot trap I only used AAs but now that all my shooting is purely recreational it's whatever is cheapest, usually federal and sometimes estate.

TheKlawMan

July 7, 2012, 11:51 AM

All my shooting is skeet and trap for which I mainly shoot reloaded Remington Gun Clubs but now am shooting a lot of Winchester AAs since I have a bunch of Winchester wads and primers.

SteelChickenShooter

July 8, 2012, 11:55 AM

I have a variety of nine different brands for different purposes with no particular loyalty.

roadrocket

July 8, 2012, 12:44 PM

i use 28grm eley olympic trap great cartridge low recoil and good patterns.

oneounceload

July 8, 2012, 07:27 PM

All my shooting is skeet and trap for which I mainly shoot reloaded Remington Gun Clubs but now am shooting a lot of Winchester AAs since I have a bunch of Winchester wads and primers.

Depending on your load, those primers and wads work well in Remington hulls also

Hawg

July 8, 2012, 08:24 PM

Growing up it was mostly Eley Gran Prix orange paper hulls with a few Remington Peters. Now it's mostly Winchester.

TheKlawMan

July 9, 2012, 12:28 AM

Quote:
All my shooting is skeet and trap for which I mainly shoot reloaded Remington Gun Clubs but now am shooting a lot of Winchester AAs since I have a bunch of Winchester wads and primers.

Depending on your load, those primers and wads work well in Remington hulls also

Actually, one ounce, I use the identical loads for Gun Clubs and AAs. I have been accumulating some AAs so I thought I would shoot them for a while. I kind of am looking to see if I have as many FTF which have been running about 1 in a thousand

GM2

July 9, 2012, 01:56 AM

Don't really have an allegiance to any particular brand, Have bought some of most all brands.